Indonesia reclaims top-tier spot in Global Muslim Travel Index 2026

Dhaka: Indonesia has reclaimed a top-tier position in the Mastercard-CrescentRating Global Muslim Travel Index (GMTI) 2026, climbing three spots to share the second-place ranking with Saudi Arabia and Turkey.

The Southeast Asian nation posted a three-point score surge to reach 79 points, recovering from a fifth-place finish in the 2025 edition of the index.

Malaysia retained its position at the top of the 150-destination ranking with a score of 83, up four points from the previous year, while Saudi Arabia and Turkey each added one point to register 79, and Qatar held steady in fifth place with a score of 76.

The United Arab Emirates saw the sharpest decline among the top ten, dropping four spots to sixth place after losing three points.

Bahrain recorded the largest gain in the index, climbing five spots to joint seventh place after a four-point increase. Iran and Kuwait shared the same seventh-place ranking, while Oman rounded out the top ten in tenth place.

Record arrivals drive market growth

According to the GMTI 2026 report, international Muslim arrivals reached 196 million in 2025, marking an 11.3% year-on-year increase. The index projects the segment will grow to 262 million arrivals by 2030, with annual expenditure expected to reach USD 310 billion.

The GMTI evaluates destinations using its ACES Framework, established in 2017. The framework assesses more than 60 datasets across four pillars — Access, Communication, Environment, and Services.

Access carries a 10% weight and measures cross-border travel readiness, including visa facilitation, e-visa processing speed, and flight connectivity. Communication accounts for 20% and evaluates language support, digital outreach, and destination marketing aimed at Muslim travelers.

Environment carries a 30% weight, covering public safety, accessibility, sustainability, and the absence of faith-based restrictions. Services carries the heaviest weight of the four pillars at 40%, focusing on Halal dining options, prayer facilities, Muslim-friendly hotels, and Islamic heritage experiences.

Indonesia's recovery strategy

Indonesia's rank drop in the 2025 index was attributed to aggressive investments by Organization of Islamic Cooperation members, particularly Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Qatar, in digital entry systems, streamlined visa procedures, and smart tourism infrastructure.

The country's comeback was driven by several coordinated initiatives across its tourism and hospitality sectors.

Indonesia's Ministry of Tourism launched MaiA, an artificial intelligence-powered platform designed to reach digital-native travelers under 40, who represent nearly 70% of the market. The tool provides personalized itineraries and highlights faith-friendly services.

The Indonesia Sharia Economic Festival, launched by Bank Indonesia, has also expanded significantly, with recent editions drawing around 444,000 attendees across four cities. The event has helped scale Halal culinary integration and strengthen grassroots business awareness in the sharia economy.

Infrastructure upgrades also played a role. The rollout of e-visas and automated biometric gates at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport reduced wait times and improved border accessibility scores.

Shifting global travel patterns

The report noted that the global Muslim travel market has become increasingly de-concentrated. The top 30 outbound source markets previously accounted for 88% of the total share, but that figure fell to 77% by 2026, forcing destinations to compete for a broader traveler base.

The index also observed that travelers are increasingly relying on digital platforms and AI tools rather than traditional web searches to plan trips, pushing destinations to ensure their Halal dining, prayer facilities, and lodging options are available as machine-readable data for automated recommendation systems.

Analysts behind the index suggested that destinations aiming to improve their standing should build technology-driven frameworks for younger travelers while maintaining accessible infrastructure for older demographics.

The report further noted that geopolitical and economic volatility, including fuel price fluctuations and airspace restrictions, has made proximity and safety increasingly important factors in traveler decision-making, prompting destinations to actively promote their security and entry-process credentials.